In the Memory of "Emperor of Kowloon"

`Emperor' who wrote royally

Thursday, July 26, 2007 - The Standard

The self-styled Emperor of Kowloon, Tsang Cho-choi, famous for his unique brand of calligraphy graffiti, died on July 15 following a heart attack. He was 86.

Tsang, who claimed that most of the land in Kowloon belonged to his ancestors, caught local, and later international attention, when his calligraphy started popping up in the strangest of places 50 years ago. These included electrical transformers, lampposts and World War II bomb shelters. At one point, his writings appeared on the hills near Kennedy Town.

In his works, Tsang always used his "royal" title and his family tree.

He sometimes included demands for the government to pay him land taxes.

Even though his artwork was persistently painted over, he often returned to revitalize his writings.

Art critic Lau Kin-wai said Tsang spent his final days at an elderly home surrounded by family members.

Lau hopes to realize Tsang's last wish of having some of his work exhibited. In recent years, Tsang's creations have received international recognition and photographs of his creations toured the United States in 2000.